Chase Carey, chief operating officer of Fox owner News Corp., told staff in a memo that a signal interruption was likely when the current deal over fees expires at midnight Thursday, halting service to millions of viewers.

Carey says an interim deal would simply help Time Warner without fair compensation to Fox.

Fox argues it needs to be paid more for broadcast signals that are retransmitted to subscribers of Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks.

Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt said Wednesday the cable operator will agree to binding arbitration and whatever steps are necessary to preserve uninterrupted access to Fox signals.